Social media marketing for medical practices & doctors
Social media acts as a reputation builder and legitimizes each practice’s identity as an expert in the field.
Vanguard Communications establishes and maintains each practice’s presence on social media websites, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn and YouTube (depending on which Vanguard marketing program a practice chooses).
Our social media program draws online followers by posting informative content to stimulate engagement and build patient trust, as well as a practice’s brand, profile and reputation.
Jump to: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn | YouTube | Pinterest
Part of the MedMarketLink program
Social media is a core component of our MedMarketLink program, the only healthcare marketing program with a new patient growth guarantee.
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More than one in six humans worldwide have a Facebook account. As the planet’s most popular social network, Facebook reaches hundreds of millions every month (about 1.7 billion worldwide) and can garner valuable endorsements from a practice’s patient base.
In turn, because Facebook is also not only highly visible to search engines but is also de facto a search engine itself, patients searching for doctors can see what past patients are saying as a means of verifying interest and trust in a practice.
Vanguard manages a practice’s Facebook page by:
- Adding practice branding messages and “about us” information.
- Encouraging new “likes” or online followers.
- Posting new content on a weekly basis, including images and links back to the practice website and other resources.
- Responding to Facebook messages, posts and questions.
- Monitoring comments and posts and approving positive comments to appear on the page’s timeline.
Twitter is similar to what’s called a micro-blog, promoting news in 160 characters or less. A practice’s Twitter account can connect with patients and referral sources by posting trustworthy information to build the practice’s name as an expert in its specialty.
We believe Twitter is an important choice for social media marketing because it ranks only behind Facebook and YouTube in popularity of social media sites, with more than 300 million users.
Vanguard manages a practice’s Twitter profile by:
- Adding practice branding and “about us” information.
- Encouraging new followers and following other profiles related to the practice’s specialty and news media.
- Posting new content and “re-tweeting” valuable content from other resources on a weekly basis, crafting effective messages in a character-limited “tweet.”
- Responding to interactions on Twitter, including re-tweets, new follows and “mentions.”
Instagram is a photo and video-sharing platform owned by Facebook. With more than 40 billion images uploaded by approximately 1 billion users, Instagram is the fifth most popular social network site, ranking above Twitter.
Due to Instagram’s visual nature, it offers an opportunity to share photos of physicians and staff interacting and patient-submitted photos. These and other visual shares can give users a peek inside the day-to-day life of the practice, adding a more personal feel while increasing trust and interest in a practice.
Vanguard manages a practice’s Instagram page by:
- Adding practice branding messages and “about us” information.
- Encouraging new “likes” or online followers.
- Posting new content on a weekly basis.
- Responding to and monitoring messages, comments and questions.
LinkedIn is a professional social networking website and can be a valuable referral source between doctors.
An optimized LinkedIn profile for a practice or a physician is another way to connect a practice with referral physicians, building its reputation as a go-to source in its specialty.
Vanguard maintains a practice’s or doctor’s LinkedIn profile by:
- Optimizing the profile with “about us” information, photos, education and other C.V. information, location and specialties.
- Encouraging new connections through joining groups and posting valuable, field-related information (links to a practice’s website and other news sources).
- Building the profile’s connections by searching for practices and doctors in their referral networks.
YouTube
As the second-largest search engine in the world (and the second most popular social media website), YouTube is an excellent way to deliver video media to patients and prospects. YouTube’s popularity ensures that all embedded video content on a practice’s website will be viewable for all users on all devices.
Vanguard uses YouTube for each practice by:
- Optimizing the YouTube channel and profile with “about us” practice information and links.
- Organizing videos into easy-to-use and easy-to-find video playlists.
- Optimizing each video’s description for maximum searchability to garner new views and expand the practice’s reach.
- Adding new video content to the channel in order to embed the video on the practice website and share on other social profiles.
Essentially a self-curated online magazine, Pinterest, the 11th most used social media site, allows its almost 300 million users a platform to catalog and select images, GIFs and videos based on personal preference. Pinterest is a “virtual storefront” for businesses and practices. Sharing a practice’s expertise through posting health tips, exercise advice and more is perfect for Pinterest.
Vanguard manages a practice’s Pinterest page by:
- Adding practice branding messages and “about us” information.
- Encouraging new “pins” or online followers.
- Posting new content on a weekly basis.